Tuesday, June 27, 2006

Training an army of believers to shoot gays, feminists, Muslims, Catholics & Jews

A laundry list of Americans are targeted as the so-called bad guys who have to be destroyed in a new game and other products being produced by the religious right, writer Chip Berlet says at Talk To Action. Berlet is a senior analyst at Political Research Associates.

The news about the videogame has been out for a bit, but Berlet puts it into perspective by quoting from Pre-Trib Perspectives, which bills itself as a "Publication Ministry of the Pre-Trib Research Center." The newsletter features commentaries by bestselling author Tim LaHaye of "Left Behind" book fame and Thomas Ice.

Berlet writes (the emphasis is mine):

The outcome of Tim LaHaye's "non-fiction" writing, the Left Behind series of novels, and the video game, is the training of young Christian evangelicals to rebel against the elected government of the United States when they decide government leaders are in service to the antichrist. And the task for these young Crusaders is to gun down the agents of Satan and their witting and unwitting allies among the ranks of the non-believers.

And from the Left Behind novels, we know this list is likely to include not just secularists, but also homosexuals, feminists, abortion providers, as well as Jews, Catholics, Hindus, and Muslims...especially Muslims.

After the 9/11 attacks, Pre-Trib Perspectives devoted more coverage to Muslims and their role in the End Times. For example, LaHaye wrote in the October 2001 issue that the attacks would "contribute to the fulfillment of several...end-times signs" ; and in February 2002 LaHaye proclaimed that "the religion of Islam has always been a terrorist religion."

Berlet's article is much longer and links to other coverage about the issue and the amazing videogame. The game has got to be one of the most frightening things I've seen in ages.